Arrested officers target of lawsuit for previous altercation

PRAIRIEVILLE - An Ascension Parish man filed a lawsuit against two officers who now face murder charges more than a year before they were arrested.

Norris Greenhouse and Derrick Stafford were charged with murder and attempted murder Friday in connection to a shooting where a six-year-old boy died. The pair were working with two other part time city marshals in Marksville when, at the end of a police chase, they opened fire on a vehicle. The child was with his father, the driver, and was shot.

According to documents obtained by the WBRZ Investigative Unit, Ian Fridge of Ascension Parish, filed a lawsuit in July 2015 against Greenhouse, Stafford, other officers, the Marksville Police Department and city following an altercation in 2014. Fridge said he was attending a 4th of July festival in Avoyelles Parish in 2014 and, as a Libertarian activist, was carrying a gun. Being an open carry advocate, Fridge said he had the handgun openly strapped to his leg.

Fridge was tased and arrested after an altercation with officers over having the weapon. Fridge believes he was targeted for his views and filed the suit.

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